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Amazon has surpassed the one million mark for robots deployed across its facilities, a milestone that puts the company’s mechanical workforce nearly on par with its human headcount.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Amazon employs around 1.56 million people globally, the majority of whom work in warehouses.
"They're one step closer to that realization of the full integration of robotics," Rueben Scriven, research manager at Interact Analysis, told the WSJ.
Amazon’s robotics program spans a wide range of tasks, from ferrying packages across floors and unloading trucks, to removing items from shelves and even picking objects from tall storage containers. The company is also reportedly testing humanoid robots that can ride in delivery vans and hand-deliver packages to customers.
The company claims that approximately 75% of its global deliveries are now supported by robotics in some capacity. Amazon says these systems have helped boost productivity and alleviate pressure from the high turnover rates in its fulfillment centers.
New tech, new roles, fewer humans
Its new 3 million square foot facility in Shreveport, Louisiana, features a large-scale automated inventory system called Sequoia. Amazon says it allows it to move products 25% faster than at other fulfillment centers.
Despite concerns about automation reducing jobs, some workers have welcomed the changes. "I thought I was going to be doing heavy lifting, I thought I was going to be walking like crazy," said Neisha Cruz, a former picker who transitioned to robot supervision at an Amazon warehouse in Connecticut.
"You have completely new jobs being created," said Yesh Dattatreya, senior applied scientist at Amazon Robotics, citing new positions such as robot technicians.
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Data paints a complex picture.
According to the WSJ, Amazon had an average of 670 workers at each fulfillment center this year, the lowest in 16 years. At the same time, the number of packages handled per worker has surged from about 175 in 2016 to 3,870 in 2025.
Reporting from the New York Times suggests that new automation-related roles may not offset job losses. One manager at a robot-heavy warehouse told the paper that only 100 of 2,500 employees were responsible for robot oversight. The same reporting also pointed to ongoing limitations in the machines, including difficulties completing essential human tasks like identifying individual items inside boxes.
Amazon’s commitment to robotics shows no signs of slowing. When the NYT published its story in November last year, Amazon had 750,000 robots in operation. Just over six months later, that number has crossed the one million threshold.
